A deer follows me
On my walk I wear a green coat
This is maybe the best thing
That has ever happened to me
I invite the deer in to share
My apple snacks
But it just stands there
Outside the gate the world is
Staring back at me blinking
Its solid gold eyelashes over
Black eyes I can’t see
My reflection in
You come in then promise you won’t make
Fun of me for having a table and chairs
Like a restaurant I just ordered online
Stuff for a life to replace everything
I gave away for slowing
To a place for sitting
And eating three meals a day
My doctor said I think
You’ll like it if I write it down
On a note of what to do when you can’t
I’ve had enough sandwich filling me
Just enough to not be hungry
I notice the deer has knees like apples
And I have knees
With bruises for a good reason
For this earth and these plants
That give us something to kneel down to
Some whole grain to chew on
Something to walk home from
Ashley Bunton is working on a few things and is currently based in Moab, Utah, where she stays steady writing. You can read more of her writing forthcoming this summer in a solstice anthology published by Quillkeepers Press and a zine designed with Paranoid Tree. You can find her mostly in the desert talking to animals and bones or on Twitter @ashbunton